


Cupcake Battles: Holliday Edition

by WheresMyNaya



Series: Cupcake Battles [2]
Category: Glee
Genre: Cupcake Battles, F/F, baking au, brittana, holiday fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-24
Updated: 2020-12-24
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:42:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28287168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WheresMyNaya/pseuds/WheresMyNaya
Summary: Tis the season for another friendly competition with a set of slightly different rules. It's Naughty vs. Nice back at the Cupcake Battles' arena! Stay tuned.
Relationships: Santana Lopez/Brittany S. Pierce
Series: Cupcake Battles [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2072049
Comments: 15
Kudos: 39





	1. Round 1 - Buche de Noel

**Author's Note:**

> A/N - Merry Christmas & Happy holidays! This is a last minute continuation of a short story I wrote a few months ago called Cupcake Battles. I've been busy writing Lost in the Lights at the moment but I really wanted to do something for the holidays. Also Cutthroat Kitchen is one of my favorite cooking shows so I just had to throw Brittana in. Anyway, soz about any errors you might find. I've been a busy girl this month.
> 
> Stay safe out there!

We’re back in the infamous Cupcake Battles’ kitchen arena where crew members dressed as elves are busy decking the halls for the holiday season. Some are hanging decorative garland, a couple work together to wheel out a giant Christmas tree while four elves trail behind carrying an armful of presents.

Suddenly the doors of the commercial kitchen are pushed open and a tall blonde enters the room in this sleek, red dress. There’s a mischievous glint in her eye and a Santa hat sitting crookedly on her head as walks with confidence towards the camera while keeping her steel briefcase close.

“Feliz Navidad, America!” She greets slyly, “Now I know what you’re thinking: where has that dorky – yet loveable – host Sam Evans gone? Why am I here instead? Did I have too much brandy in my eggnog last night and accidentally wind up on the wrong show again? I wish! You’ve just tuned into a special Christmas episode of Cupcake Battles: the _Holliday_ Edition with me – Holly Holliday, host of Cutthroat Cook-Off. But, this isn’t any ordinary takeover. Stay tuned to see how I’ll be testing our competitors, I’m sure you’ll recognize them.”

“As you know, I’m loaded,” Holly raises the case she’s been holding, “I have with me $100,000 of cold hard cash money. I’ve specifically requested four chefs to play today who will get $25,000 each _but_ if they want to leave this kitchen with any of that money they’ll have to survive three of my culinary challenges…and each other.”

All the lights dim dramatically and a spot light shaped like a snowflake is put on Holly, “It’s a game we like to call: Cutthroat Cook-Off.”

When the lights go back to normal, all of the elves have disappeared and the kitchen stations normally used for Cupcake Battles have been moved to replicate the Cutthroat Cook-Off set. There are a row of four pedestals with a wire shopping basket sitting atop each of them. Behind each pedestal is a prep station set up with a stand mixer and baking utensils.

“But unlike Cupcake Battles, there will only be one judge while I’m here,” Holly continues with a smirk as the camera zooms out, “Let’s see why.”

\\\

A moment later, the new host is nowhere to be found as the first contestant enters the Cupcake Battles’ kitchen. There’s a confused look on her face as she looks around at the once familiar-looking kitchen.

“Uhh,” Sugar Motta frowns, “Am I in the right place? Looks like Christmas threw up in here.”

\\\

The screen soon fills with Sugar sitting alone in front of the Cupcake Battle’s pastel pink backdrop but it is now littered with candy cane graphics for the holidays. There’s a big smile on her face as she waves and blows the camera a two-handed kiss.

“What up, America!” She greets excitedly, “It’s your girl Sugar, back at it again to kick some ass!”

Sugar punches her small fist into her hand for emphasis.

“You might remember me from the last time I was here with my homegirl, Britt,” Sugar continues as a picture of the pair accompany her onscreen, “We competed against a bunch of amateurs and won a whole lotta money. Britt got super lucky though and found love post-win.”

A picture of Brittany and Santana replace the previous picture as Sugar draws a heart with her fingers, “She and Santana have been going steady ever since! It's great and they're super cute. We’re kind of a little family now that Santana’s always around at Batter Up Cupcakes, but that doesn’t mean anything here.”

The picture of Santana and Brittany is swiped away as Sugar’s expression hardens.

“My name might be Sugar but there’s nothing sweet about me,” Sugar says as she reveals _Naughty_ has been written across the back of her light grey chef coat.

\\\

Back in the Cupcake Battles’ kitchen, Sugar heads over to the first pedestal as the next contestant enters.

“Oh dear God,” Kurt groans when he sets his eyes on his competitor, “Not you.”

“That’s not very _Nice_ ,” Sugar fakes a pout.

\\\

We’re back at the candy cane backdrop where Kurt Hummel sits primly. He gives the camera a stoic bow of his head before he goes to introduce himself.

“Hello, I’m Kurt Hummel,” He says politely, “You’ll probably recognize me as one of the Cupcake Battle judges who usually watches the chaos from afar, but when Miss Holliday requests your _presents_ you do what she says.”

Kurt begins to grin proudly, “You see what I did there? _Presents_ , because it's _Christmas_. Okay, anyway I've dusted off my chef coat so that I can prove to America that I can still hang with the best of them.”

“The other chefs will have to watch out,” He turns his back a little to reveal the word _Nice_ printed on his dark grey chef coat, “The _Nice_ guy always finishes last.”

\\\

Back in the kitchen arena, Kurt moves to stand next to Sugar. He eyes her hesitantly as he scowls.

Sugar sees him and rolls her eyes, “You can’t still be mad about the eggnog thing?”

Kurt scoffs, “I had on a very expensive pair of onyx trousers and you spilled your glass all over me! Yes, I am still very mad.”

“Chill,” Sugar brushes him off as she checks her nails, “It was an accident.”

“It was not!” Kurt argues, already getting riled up again, “You specifically said _Eggnog sucks_ and proceeded to knock it over ON ME no less. That’s exactly why you’re on the Naughty List.”

Sugar smirks at the memory – it _was_ pretty hilarious seeing Kurt with this giant white patch covering his lap. It totally made her night, he was so embarrassed!

“Calm down,” She tells him, “You act like it happened yesterday or something.”

Kurt looks at her in disbelief, “It _was_ yesterday.”

“Was it?”

“Yes! That’s exactly why I’m still – “

“Stop the violence,” A voice calls out.

The camera pans from the bickering pair to the new competitor entering the kitchen arena: Brittany S. Pierce.

\\\

Sitting in front of the candy cane backdrop now is Brittany who waves enthusiastically at the camera.

“It’s Brittany, bitch!” She greets, “You might remember me from when I competed here with Sugar as Team Batter Up Cupcakes. A _lot_ has changed since then, but I’m sure you know all about that. Dating a culinary celeb is crazy, but we’re still going strong!”

Brittany gets momentarily swept up in thoughts of her girlfriend and smiles dreamily.

“It feels like it was just yesterday that I was in this very kitchen splattering Santana’s boob with chocolate and falling in love with her. So of course when Holly reached out about this crossover idea, I was totally down!” Brittany then goes to stage whisper, “Also, Cutthroat Cook-Off is my favorite show – don’t tell Santana. Anyway! I can’t wait to see what kind of trouble I’ll get up to.”

Off-screen someone says, “You’re on the Nice list, Brittany.”

Brittany pouts as she looks to the white chef coat in her hand with the word _Nice_ printed on the back then asks, “Can I be on both instead?”

\\\

Brittany does a little bow before she comes to stand next to Kurt, “You still mad about the eggnog thing?”

“I wouldn’t be if she would just apologize already,” Kurt grumbles.

“I’m not going to apologize for an accident,” Sugar huffs, “It wasn’t _my_ fault. If you want to be mad, be mad at gravity!”

“Makes sense,” Brittany shrugs before looking to Kurt, “Where’s your Christmas spirit? It’s the season for forgiving! Or was that Thanksgiving?”

Kurt only sighs as he lets it go for the time being, “At least Britt and I are on the Nice List. Looks like you’re outnumbered, Motta.”

“Please,” A voice calls out as the camera reveals that Santana is the last contestant, “Being Nice is _so_ overrated.”

Brittany just stares at her girlfriend in awe, “God, I love her so much.”

Santana only smirks as she makes her way over to the others.

\\\

The screen fills with the candy cane backdrop one last time and Santana sits before it looking unamused as ever.

“What do you mean _introduce myself?_ Do you _really_ think I need to do that?” She asks, “I’m the most famous pastry chef in the country. Yes, I’m putting myself above Hummel because _obviously._ Everyone knows who I am already; it’s on them if they don’t.”

A black chef coat is tossed her way with the word _Naughty_ written on the back. She looks down at it and laughs, “Shocker.”

\\\

Back in the kitchen arena, Santana struts to her position next to Brittany. She eyes her up and down before quirking her brow, “You look good in white.”

Brittany tries not to blush at the compliment.

“Wait,” Kurt pauses, “This can’t be fair. They’ll just team up against us.”

Sugar eyes them suspiciously, “Yeah! Santana’s so whipped, she’d never sabotage Brittany herself.”

Kurt nods, “Same goes for Brittany!”

“Can it,” Santana tells Kurt and Sugar with this steely gaze, “I’m here to win and I’ll take down anyone who stands in my way…even Britt.” Her glare softens when she glances to Brittany, “Sorry babe.”

“It’s cool,” Brittany just shrugs, “You’re on the Naughty list and I’m on the Nice one, we’re like sworn enemies now.”

“Oh my God, you’re right,” Sugar gasps, “Like Romeo and Juliet, your love is forbidden.”

“Uhh,” Santana looks unsure, “Maybe a little dramatic.”

“Just a little,” Brittany chuckles, “The important thing though this is that you won’t be winning anything today so _sorry babe_.”

Santana gasps as she clutches her chest while Brittany smirks.

Kurt and Sugar exchange an impressed look.

“Okay,” Kurt nods, “This could be interesting after all.”

\\\

Now that all four chefs have taken their place at their pedestals and have gotten acquainted, Holly Holliday finally makes her grand entrance.

“Season’s greetings, Chefs!” Holly announces as she saunters in with her steel case. She gives the competitors a once over and says, “Everyone’s looking merry and bright; well, we’re about to end all of that!”

Kurt’s eyes go wide as Holly gives them her infamous sly grin. Brittany bounces excitedly.

“As you might’ve noticed, half of you are on the Nice list,” Holly points out.

Kurt and Brittany smile at each other.

“Some of you are not,” Holly adds, “For obvious reasons.” 

Sugar and Santana grin devilishly.

“Today we’re going to see what’s the best way to win: being Naughty or being Nice?”

“I think we all know the answer to that,” Sugar says.

Brittany and Santana answer at the same time, “Being Naughty.”

“Britt,” Kurt laughs, “You’re playing for the wrong team again.”

Brittany waves him off, “I can play for both.”

“Let's go over the new house rules during my little takeover,” Holly says to the Chefs, “You're going to compete against each other for three rounds and at the end of each round, one of you will be eliminated.”

Santana looks determined as ever as she looks down the line at the others, “Focus up. That’ll be one of you.”

“I don’t think so,” Brittany smirks.

“Do you even remember how to work under pressure like this?” Sugar jokes, “You’ve spent so much time on the other side.”

“You just watch and learn,” Santana warns.

“Before each round, I will assign a dish,” Holly continues, “Since it’s the holidays and this is the Cupcake Battles’ arena _and_ you are all pastry chefs, each dish will be a dessert of my choosing and they better spark some joy. You will then have 60 seconds to shop for all of your ingredients in my special Cutthroat Cook-Off pantry.”

The camera pans to a section of the wall that opens up to reveal a glassed-in pantry stocked almost to the ceiling with all sorts of ingredients a chef could possibly need – hopefully.

“After that, we have ourselves a little auction,” Holly smiles mischievously, “You will be able to bid on a sabotage I've come up with to then gift to a person of your choosing.”

“Awesome,” Brittany grins.

Kurt just looks at her like she’s lost it. He gets the feeling that Brittany isn’t too worried about walking out of here without any money, she just wants to win.

Holly then flips open her steel case to reveal neat bundles of cash, “That's where this comes in.”

Sugar instantly perks up at the sight of so much money, “Now we’re talking.”

“Everyone's going to get $25,000 to use during the course of this competition but keep in mind,” Holly points out, “There is only _one_ winner and that winner will only walk out with what money they have _left_ so spend wisely, Chefs.”

Santana rubs her hands together, “All of that is coming home with me.”

Brittany raises a brow, “You think you won’t spend anything?”

“Won’t need to,” Santana smirks.

Brittany just chuckles, “The confidence is so hot, but you’re in for a rude awakening.”

“You got that right,” Sugar nods.

“Sugar isn’t a threat,” Santana replies before quirking her brow at Brittany, “And you and I both know that I can handle you.”

Brittany narrows her eyes, “I don’t know, San, last night would suggest otherwise.”

“Oh my God,” Kurt groans, “You two really can’t help yourselves, can you?”

Brittany just looks innocently at the camera while Santana shakes her head.

“Everyone gets two bundles,” Holly instructs as she takes the case and approaches Sugar first.

Sugar takes two and sniffs the cash, “Smells like victory.”

“Enjoy it while it lasts,” Kurt thumbs the bills of each stack.

Brittany claps hers together while Santana fans herself with hers.

“Get used to holding all that money at once, I doubt you’ll be hanging onto it for long,” Holly says ominously. She shuts the case and sets it aside, “Alright! For Round 1, let’s start off with something simple for the holidays. I’m thinking…Buche de Noel.”

“You think _that_ is simple?” Kurt deadpans.

Sugar’s face fills with confusion, “What the hell is that?”

“Are you kidding me?” Santana’s shocked as she looks down the line to Sugar.

Sugar just shrugs and looks to Brittany for help, but Holly’s already going forward with an explanation.

“Or otherwise known as a Yule Log,” Holly explains, “It is Christmas cake with some sort of cream filling, rolled to look like a log.”

“Why would anyone want to eat a log?” Sugar wonders with her nose crinkled.

“Right?” Brittany nods, “I don’t get it either but they look cool.”

“It’s a classic for the holidays,” Kurt assures them, “ _I_ make one every year for the dinner party I host. I got this.”

“As someone that has personally tasted that,” Santana quips, “You got _nothing_.”

Kurt grimaces at Santana’s remark.

Holly only smirks, loving the banter already!

“You'll have 45 minutes this round; that's super generous,” Holly says, “Your 60 second shopping time begins…NOW!”

The four chefs grab their baskets and rush to the pantry. It’s a mad dash for eggs, cream, cocoa powder, and whatever else the chefs need to make their version of this classic dessert. Hands are grabbing and bodies are colliding as the time quickly runs out.

Santana even almost shoved Sugar to the floor for the last container of unsweetened cocoa powder! Kurt is being methodical about his mental list while Brittany seems as cool as a cucumber gathering up the ingredients on hers.

“You need a hand, baby?” Brittany teases as she leans against Santana to easily reach the top shelf that Santana is visibly struggling to get to.

“No!” Santana replies although her face says otherwise.

Brittany throws her a bone though and pushes a container to the very edge of the shelf so Santana has an easier time reaching before she throws hers into her basket.

Brittany gets in close to Santana and husks, “Don’t say I never did anything for you.”

Santana rolls her eyes at the flirty tone, “So generous.”

“You can thank me later,” Brittany winks as she continues throwing things into her basket, “You know, once I win.”

“Not gonna happen,” Santana smirks.

“5…4…3,” Holly begins to count down as she lingers by the pantry door. Final items are grabbed before everyone but Sugar rushes out, “2…1!”

Miraculously, Sugar slips through the doors before Holly locks her in. She hurries over to her pedestal to set down her basket and eyes the rest of the Chefs’ baskets to see if she got everything.

Holly looks at each of the competitors and smirks, “Now for the fun part.” She heads over to a section of the wall that has been repainted to look like a chimney, “Let’s see what’s up for auction!”

The first sabotage is lowered down on the dumbwaiter and Holly pulls out an ugly Christmas sweater. She holds it up against her, “Oh look! An ugly Christmas sweater, I’m sure everyone’s familiar. We’re all bound to have one of these lying around.”

Kurt scoffs, “Of course not.”

“I’ve seen ones with garland, some with tinsel, even ones that light up!” Holly says, “But I’ve designed something that beats all of those. Elves! Bring me my ugly Christmas sweater.”

Soon an elf comes rolling out a clothing rack with a single ugly Christmas sweater hanging on the lone hanger. This isn’t any ordinary sweater though…it’s been custom made just for tonight.

“What the hell is that?” Santana gasps as she sees a variety of cooking utensils dangling from the fabric. There’s a whisk, a gingerbread man-shaped spatula, Christmas colored measuring cups, a small candy cane-stripped rolling pin, along with other baking essentials tethered to the sweater.

“That can’t be comfortable,” Brittany points out.

“Oh, it’s not!” Holly laughs, “Win this auction and you will force your opponent to wear this amazing Christmas sweater designed by yours truly and _only_ use the cooking utensils tethered to it.”

“That’s just messed up,” Brittany cringes. 

“I think you mean _Naughty_ ,” Holly winks, “Who will give me $1,000 for the hottest fashion statement of the season?”

“Don’t be rude,” Kurt scoffs, “That is not fashion. $1,000!”

“$2,000!” Brittany bids next.

Santana remains silent.

“$2,500,” Says Sugar.

“3,500!” Kurt offers.

Holly looks to Brittany. The Nice Chef shakes her head.

Holly looks to Sugar. The Naughty Chef ponders. She knows Kurt will want to go after her first considering how last night’s dinner party went. She really needs to pay karma more attention.

“$4,000.”

“$4,500.”

“$5,000.”

“$6,000!” Kurt says with finality. He glares at Sugar, just waiting for her to try him again. He is not backing down, there’s no way he’s going to be saddled with that sabotage.

Sugar doesn’t bid.

“Going once,” Holly prompts, “Going twice.”

Sugar backs out and Kurt lets out a squeal.

“Sold to Chef Kurt!” Holly announces, “Run me my cash, sir. Who will you be gifting this lovely sweater to?”

“I can’t believe I spent that much on his ugly thing,” Kurt chuckles as he walks over to pay before grabbing the hanger. It surprises no one when he walks straight over to Sugar, “My gift to you. Try not to spill eggnog on this one.”

Sugar sticks her tongue out at him as she takes the sweater from him. She holds it up to her and turns to Brittany, “How do I look?”

Brittany gives her an approving nod, “It’s cute. I’d wear it.”

“Cute fades,” Kurt tells her with a cocky grin, “But that ugly Christmas sweater is eternal. No way I’d be caught dead in the hideous thing.”

“Says the man that still wears fishnets,” Santana quips.

Kurt rounds on her, “For the last time, it’s called mesh. The holes are so much smaller.”

Santana gives him a look, “Like that’s any better?”

“Okay! The next sabotage up for auction,” Holly calls out as a stack of papers bound in dark green leather is revealed. The host picks it up and looks surprised, “No way! It’s Christmas sheet music. Remember when mediocre singers would get together and go door to door to harass everyone with their horrible voices?”

“How can you forget?” Santana grumbles, “Christmas music is the worst part about the holidays.”

Brittany looks disbelieving at her, “You’ve been playing Christmas music since November 1st.”

“You’re one of _those?”_ Sugar looks scandalized while Santana shakes her head.

“Listening to Christmas music on the radio is way different that having to suffer through carolers,” Santana explains, “ _That’s_ the worst part.”

“Uh-huh,” Brittany smirks.

“Win this auction and you will force the rest of your competitors to stop what they’re doing and get up here to sing some Christmas carols with our carolers whenever I ring this door bell,” Holly announces, “Elves! Bring out the carolers!”

Soon a group of six dressed as classic Christmas carolers walk out and begin humming _Silent Night_. Holly grins as she sees frowns fill the Chefs’ faces, “Who wants to give me – “

“$2,000!” Sugar yells. She’s going to need all the time she can get to make this Yule Log and this stupid sweater is already going to slow her down, so she can’t get hit with this sabotage too.

“$2,500,” Kurt offers. He’s just wanting to drive up the price, he actually doesn’t mind if he gets hit with this one. Christmas carols are a secret love of his.

“3,500,” Sugar offers.

“Still not going to bid, Chef Santana?” Holly points out.

Santana shakes her head, “Like I said, all this money is leaving with me.”

“Okaaay,” Holly doesn’t look convinced, “Sugar has the highest bid at $1,200. Going once, going twi – “

“$5,000,” Brittany interrupts.

Sugar’s jaw drops as she looks to Brittany.

Brittany just smiles coolly as Holly calls it.

“Sold to Chef Brittany!” Holly announces, “Chef Sugar, Chef Kurt, Chef Santana when you hear me ring this doorbell you will have to drop what you’re doing and join our Cutthroat Cook-Off Carolers for a song. I will ring this bell more than once so don’t think you’ll be getting off easy with only one song.”

Everyone but Santana gives Brittany a glare. The blonde just beams back with this Cheshire grin.

“Alright, that’s it for now,” Holly says, “Your 45 minutes of cook time start…NOW!”

\\\

Everyone rushes off to their stations and makes quick work of emptying their baskets to get everything in order. Kurt, Santana and Brittany are in the zone but Sugar already looks like she’s struggling as the elves help her into the ugly Christmas sweater.

“God, I can barely move in this thing!” Sugar pouts as the utensils clang against each other every time she moves. The rolling pin is the worst part, it feels like she’s being weighed down as it awkwardly swings from side to side.

Kurt snickers as he expertly measures out his ingredients, “You look great, Sugar.”

“Is this pay back for the eggnog?” She grumbles as she gets to work on her Christmas cake.

“Absolutely.”

Sugar grimaces, “Yule be sorry.”

“Nice one!” Brittany compliments with a chuckle.

Santana just presses her lips together in a smirk as she begins separating her eggs.

\\\

The pressure is on for Brittany since she is the only one that doesn’t have any sabotages against her this round. She _has_ to nail this and what better way than to go with her mom’s famous recipe which uses mascarpone instead of the typical whipped cream filling.

She’s also going to do something she’s never done before and infuse the filling with peppermint to really make it feel Christmassy. Hopefully it turns out perfectly and it will impress the judge – whoever they might be.

“Do you hear what I hear?” Holly asks ten minutes into the competition as she rapidly rings the doorbell, “It’s time for caroling!”

“Damnit,” Kurt grumbles, “I need to get this cake cooking asap!”

“Tough cookies,” Brittany teases, “It’s time to spread that Christmas cheer!”

“This is ridiculous,” Santana complains as an elf hands her a top hat and scarf, “Do I really need to wear all of this?”

Sugar looks a little worried as she sends a fleeting glance to her station.

Brittany just watches with a pleased smile as the three of them get in close with the other carolers, “You guys have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to see the three of you together like this.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Kurt waves off as they begin to sing.

Holly sways side to side but begins to cringe when Sugar tries to hit a high note.

“Santana only sings in the shower and Kurt refuses to go to a karaoke bar with me and Sugar,” Brittany explains to Holly as she continues to cringe upon hearing Sugar butcher _Santa Claus is Coming to Town._

“Yeah, I can see why,” Holly laughs, “She sounds like a dying animal.”

“Is she tone deaf?” Kurt asks aloud. He and Santana sing in perfect harmony, but Sugar…yikes.

“You’re blowing out my eardrum,” Santana complains.

“You know what they say,” Sugar says, “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loudly for all to hear.”

“Yeah, I think that only applies to those that can actually sing,” Kurt tells her.

Sugar isn’t the least bit phased and continues to sing loudly.

“Wow, she’s so enthusiastic,” Holly points out. 

And _that’s_ when Sugar starts wailing – complete with hand movements which nearly gets Santana in the face.

“Settle down, Mariah!” Santana chastises as she forces Sugar’s hands out of the way.

“This is the greatest thing ever,” Brittany laughs as she fills her pans with cake batter and puts them in the oven, “There’s so much space now that you’re all stuck up there!”

Santana just narrows her eyes at Brittany as she belts out, “ _He’s gonna find out who’s naughty or nice!”_

\\\

Another 25 minutes and several caroling interruptions later, Sugar has finally started to work on her whipped cream filling. She’s absolutely covered in cocoa powder and batter as used cooking utensils hang off of her sweater.

“How’s it going, Sweet Cheeks?” Holly asks as she eyes the mess that is Sugar’s station.

“Oh you know,” Sugar answers as she measures out some Kahlua to throw into her cream, “It’s a jolly good time.”

“You’re on fire, Sug!” Brittany giggles at her pun.

“I wish,” Kurt smirks.

“Okay, how is _he_ a Nice chef?” Sugar grumbles, “You’re such a Scrooge, Kurt.” 

Holly only chuckles, “You and Kurt seem to have an intense rivalry going on tonight.”

“Tonight?” Santana snickers, “Please, they’re _always_ like this. You should see them on Game Night at me and Britt’s place. It’s an all out war.”

“Can confirm,” Brittany nods, “We’re all pretty competitive but they take it to a whole new level.”

“He’s just bitter,” Sugar replies before yelling out to him, “And PETTY!”

Kurt just ignores her as he continues to work on his filling.

“So you’re not concerned that he might come back with a vengeance?” Holly asks Sugar, “You’re the only Chef with two sabotages.” 

“I can handle anything they throw at me, but I mean…” Sugar looks hesitant, “He _does_ know his way around a Yule Log so...”

Kurt’s face goes red and Holly looks to the camera in surprise.

“Right on!” Holly cheers and goes to the only other person still standing at their station, “Chef Santana! Quiet but deadly over here.”

Santana smirks, “That’s right. Let’s hope you don’t go ringing that damn doorbell again.”

“We’ll see,” Holly matches her expression, “How are you going to stand out with your take on Buche de Noel? Do I smell coffee?”

“You do,” Santana answers, “I’m doing a tiramisu version. I’ve got my espresso syrup cooling down over there which I’ve hit with a little brandy. It’s sure to _lift_ the judge’s spirits.”

“Now that sounds delicious,” Brittany chimes in as she returns with her cooled rolled cake, “Can I get a taste?”

Santana looks her way just in time to catch the flirty wink the blonde sends her way. After being only momentarily distracted, Santana steadies herself. Brittany’s been known to use her flirty ways on Santana, but the Chef isn’t in a position to fall for her this time!

“What are you making, B?” She asks instead of swiping her finger through the cream to give Brittany a taste anyway.

“Mom’s recipe,” Brittany answers, “You know the one.”

“Damn, Really?” Santana mutters, “That’s a crowd pleaser.”

“It sure is,” Brittany beams proudly, “This judge won’t know what hit’em.”

“Does that change things for you?” Holly asks Santana.

“No way,” Santana smirks, “I’ve still got this. Whitney’s recipe might be amazing, but mine’s right up there with hers.”

Holly only quirks her brow as she turns away to check on Kurt. Once she leaves, Santana tries to sneak a peek at Brittany’s station, but the blonde catches her.

“Hey! No peeking,” Brittany chastises.

Santana quickly looks away to continue on her own work, “I’ve been trying to get that recipe out of your mom for weeks now! She just won’t budge.”

“Sorry babe, it’s a family secret,” Brittany chuckles, “You’ll have to put a ring on it if you want in.”

Santana looks surprised by Brittany’s honesty but she’s also a little curious as she jokingly asks, “You trying to get a proposal out of me, Britt-Britt?”

Santana would be lying if she said she wasn’t thinking about it a lot more recently, but that might just be because she’s seen so many people popping the question lately. She and Brittany have been together for just under a year now, she’s uprooted her life in L.A. to be with her, so she’s definitely serious about their relationship.

But is it too soon to be thinking about forever? That’s the real question.

Brittany gives her no type of hint though, just grins as she continues working on frosting her cake.

\\\

“Time’s up and hands off!” Holly calls out as time runs out. As the Chefs back away from their completed dishes, Holly continues, “Since the usual Cupcake Battle judges are little _busy_ at the moment, let’s meet your judge for the day.”

The camera then pans to the entrance as Will Schuester walks in dressed in a festive sweater vest and slacks. He takes a bow as he comes to stand next to Holly.

“Let’s welcome Will Schuester, accomplished chef and restauranteur and lover of all things Christmas,” Holly introduces.

“Merry Christmas, everyone!” Will greets.

The Chefs wish him a merry Christmas in return.

“So Will,” Holly says, “Round 1 is all about Buche de Noel.”

“Ah, a classic,” Will hums.

“Totally,” Holly nods before turning back to the players, “Here’s the twist, Chefs, Will has been locked away in Santa’s workshop and knows nothing about what you misfits have been up to and he doesn’t care.”

Will nods, “Not one bit.”

“He only cares about three things,” Holly says, “You tell them, Handsome.”

“Taste, presentation and does it remind me of a Yule Log,” Will answers.

“Alright Chefs, let’s see what you’ve got!”

\\\

Will approaches Sugar first and is completely blown away by her presentation. For someone who didn’t know what a Yule Log was at first, she really knocked it out of the park.

“This is stunning work, Chef Sugar,” Will compliments before taking a bite. His face falls instantly, “Woah! You can really taste the alcohol in this.”

“You’re welcome,” Sugar smiles sweetly.

Will frowns as he sets down his fork, “I’m not sure I’d thank you for that.”

Sugar’s smile falters, “I may have been a little heavy-handed with the Kahlua.”

“You think? I might actually have a buzz right now after that,” Will jokes as he moves on to the next person, “Thank you, Chef.”

As Will moves along to Kurt, Brittany catches Santana’s eye and winks. She totally has this in the bag! Thank God, it would’ve sucked if she screwed up this first round _without_ being sabotaged.

Santana gives her two thumbs up but then slowly turns them downwards. Brittany just laughs and blows a kiss her way as she listens to Will critique Kurt’s dish.

“Am I tasting chestnut?” Will asks as he finishes his first bite.

Kurt smiles proudly, “Roasted them over an open fire and everything.”

“Did you really?” Will looks impressed.

“Not really,” Kurt chuckles, “But I did fold the puree into the filling. Just wanted to do something a little different.”

“It’s a nice touch,” Will compliments, “Reminds me of the holidays but I’m not sure about the cake. Maybe could’ve gone for a little less time in the oven? It’s a tad dry.”

Kurt looks shocked. He’s a veteran baker along with Santana so he shouldn’t be making that kind of mistake – then again the cake probably wouldn’t have been overcooked if Holly hadn’t kept making them sing.

Damn Brittany for hitting him with that sabotage!

Kurt thanks Will anyway as the judge moves on.

“Chef Brittany,” Holly prompts, “Please explain your dish.”

Brittany smiles politely at Holly and Will, “Hi Chef. Today I’ve prepared a classic Buche de Noel recipe that has been in my family for generations. It is a chocolate cake with mascarpone filling and a touch of peppermint.”

Will nods as he takes his first bite and soon his face fills with delight, “This is wonderful, Chef Brittany! The cake is cooked to a perfect doneness, presentation is exactly what I’m looking for, but what really does it for me is that hit of peppermint. It really reminds me of the holidays.”

Brittany swells with pride as she bows her head, “Thanks Chef.”

Will and Holly then move on to Santana.

“I can smell the coffee on this one,” Will notes with a chuckle, “We meet again, Chef Santana.”

“Hi Chef,” Santana greets, “I’ve gone a little out of the box here and did a tiramisu take on the classic Buche de Noel. I made an espresso syrup with instant coffee and a little simple sugar that I used to soak the chocolate cake, then I infused the whipped cream with a little hazelnut liqueur.”

Will goes for a bite and is pleasantly surprised, “It looks like a Yule Log and it is beautifully done but it doesn’t taste like Yule Log. I don’t think I’ve ever had a tiramisu style Buche de Noel but I really enjoy this. Although it doesn’t truly remind me of Christmas when it comes to flavor, I really appreciate you thinking outside of the box.”

Brittany can tell Santana’s trying to stifle her urge to argue and it makes her giggle into her hand. It’s rare that Santana’s ever on this side of the judging panel so to see it happening not-so-much in her favor is kind of great.

“Alright Will, now that you’ve tasted these four dishes,” Holly prompts as they move to stand before the Chefs, “Who will be going _ho ho_ home?”

Brittany feels confident she’s going through to the next round – same as Kurt – so her guess is between Sugar and Santana. Sugar had the looks but definitely not the taste, same as Santana. She’s guessing it’ll come down to the better presentation – if that’s the case, Santana might being going home which is super surprising.

She won’t say it out loud but, she thinks Santana is her biggest competition.

Will eyes the four Chefs, “Everyone put forward amazing looking dishes and almost everyone hit their marks, but there was on that really stood out to me…and not in a good way. That person is…Chef Sugar.”

“Damn,” Sugar slumps.

“Sorry Chef Sugar,” Holly says with a shake of her head, “I’m gonna need that dough back.”

Sugar nods and swipes her stack of cash to hand in to Holly. Once she’s up close, she glances Will’s way and narrows her eyes at him, “You’re a mean one, Mr. Grinch.”

Will chuckles, “Sorry Chef. Thanks for playing.”

Sugar waves goodbye to her friends and heads out of the kitchen.

\\\

Sugar does her walk of shame down the hall leaving the kitchen arena and looks to the camera, “I’m shocked. I thought it tasted great, especially since I started off this round not knowing what the hell a Buche de Noel is. Who doesn’t love a little extra booze in you dessert? It’s the holidays.”

Sugar’s shoulders slump a little as she sighs, “It’s whatever. I didn’t need the money anyway.”

\\\

Back with the remaining Chefs, Holly and Will still stand before them. Santana and Brittany catch each other’s eye and share a secretive smile before Kurt catches them.

“No! None of that,” Kurt warns, “No telepathic conversations. That’s cheating.”

Santana rolls her eyes, “I’m just looking at her.”

“Yeah, that’s how it always starts,” Kurt notes with the shake of his head.

Brittany only chuckles, “So I can’t admire how hot my girlfriend looks? You know what it does to me when she’s wearing her chef coat.”

“Yes, unfortunately I do know what it does to you,” Kurt replies, “And I wish I didn’t.”

The remaining totals for each Chef is displayed on screen:

_Kurt: $18,000_

_Brittany: $20,000_

_Santana: $25,000_

“Okay! Congrats Chefs,” Holly compliments as she reels the three Chefs in, “Looks like you’ve made it past the first round but it only gets harder from here. Prepare yourself for a _blizzard_ because the next round is going to be a white out!”


	2. Round 2 - Christmas Party Cupcake

“Okay let’s keep this snowball rolling,” Holly says, “You know what I love about the holidays? Someone’s always throwing a party! The best part? Free food! Everything’s always so festive too, especially when it comes to dessert. But it’s a party and no one has time to sit and eat anything, so for Round 2 I want to see your best Christmas Party cupcake.”

Holly doesn’t miss the way Brittany lights up, “This should be right up your chimney, Chef Brittany. You’re kind of the Cupcake Queen.”

“I might know a thing or two,” Brittany smirks.

Santana just fakes a scowl.

Brittany might have the advantage here, but Santana has been spending a lot of time at Batter Up Cupcakes so she has picked up on quite a few things – never mind that she has literally tasted thousands of cupcakes over the span of working on Cupcake Battles. They may not be her specialty but she’s no amateur either.

Although Kurt mostly works with pastries, he’s been known to dabble with a cupcake every so often. He can’t let Brittany get away sabotage-free this time around though, that might be his undoing if it happens.

“Okay for this round I will give you 45 minutes again,” Holly offers, “That’s loads of time. In fact, that’s so much time that I want you to make me two different kinds of cupcakes.”

Brittany’s already coming up with a game plan so the addition of a second flavor isn’t too hard to work in. Santana and Kurt don’t see too phased either, but who know what’ll happen once the sabotages are introduced.

“And your 60 second shopping times starts…NOW!”

\\\

Once again it’s a mad dash for the essential ingredients. Santana’s never had to shop so fast in her entire life, but she moves around the pantry swiftly just hoping she’s getting everything that she needs to pull off two flavors of cupcakes.

“You won’t be able to combine two in one this time, Britt!” Santana teases as she reaches into the fridge for some eggs.

“Won’t need to,” Brittany fires back, “I’ve got the perfect thing for this.”

Kurt zips in between the two and swipes the last of the fresh vanilla beans, “I can’t wait to see what crazy combination you come up with. Doubt you’ll be able to flirt your way through this one.”

“Hey!” Santana bumps him with her hip, “She won fair and square and everyone knows it.”

Brittany smiles appreciatively Santana’s way. After the public got word of their relationship, there was slight concern that Brittany might’ve been given special treatment but she was able to assure everyone that the only special treatment Santana was giving her happened well after the show ended.

“I won’t need to flirt with anyone, Kurt, my cupcakes will be way more festive than any of your boring old recipes,” Brittany quips, “Sorry, I mean _classic_. Isn’t that what you like to call it to cover up your lack of creativity?”

Santana just laughs as she jets out of the pantry first.

Kurt scowls, “You have been spending _way_ too much time with Santana.”

“5…4…,” Holly starts to count down but Kurt and Brittany rush out of there well seconds to spare, “3-2-1. You guys were quick this time! Let’s see how you feel about my sabotages for this round.”

Holly heads over to the chimney again and gives it a knock. Down comes the first sabotage and the Chefs watch anxiously to see what is revealed.

“A bucket?” Brittany questions.

“Ah, it’s not just any bucket,” Holly comments as she upturns the bucket. The Chefs are amazed at what falls out.

“Is that snow?” Kurt stammers

“It is,” Brittany replies.

Santana blinks, “But how?”

“I’ve been dreaming of a white Christmas for so long, but this is L.A. so that’ll never happen,” Holly sighs, “Lucky for us, the elves have been busy at work making this!”

On cue, a team of elves push a 7ft wall made of snow into the kitchen. On the wall are three shelves – also made of snow – and on each of the shelves are pictures of a variety of baking ingredients. There’s the basics like: flour, eggs, sugar, butter as well as other specialty ingredients like different spices and flavorings.

Brittany looks up at the wall and frowns; she thinks she might now where this is going.

A couple other elves trot out carrying red buckets just like Holly revealed which are over flowing with snow. They set them down in front of the snow-wall of ingredients before hurrying out of the way.

“You’ve probably seen a game similar to this at the carnival,” Holly explains, “I have – of course – made my own tweaks. Win this auction and you’ll force an opponent to give up their entire basket of ingredients and make them win it all back by knocking down pictures on the shelves with snowballs which they’ll also have to make.”

Kurt looks nervous; he has terrible aim.

“Okay Chefs, you _snow_ the drill,” Holly grins, “Who wants to give me $2,000?”

“$2,000,” Kurt offers up first.

Brittany continues to think. Would she be able to work with this sabotage? She wants to leave this competition with a least some kind of cash, but at what cost? She hasn’t played softball since high school, but she doubts her aim is as bad as Kurt’s. She might be able to work with this if she gets it.

That doesn’t mean she wants it though.

“$3,000,” Brittany offers then looks to Santana.

“$3,500,” Kurt calls out instead.

It doesn’t look like Santana is going to bid yet again. Brittany can’t tell if she’s crazy or smart as hell.

“$4,000,” Brittany bids.

“$5,000!” Kurt replies quickly.

Brittany backs off; this sabotage kind of looks fun and she really doesn’t want to spend $5,000 on snow. She already spent way too much on making everyone sing Christmas carols last round.

“Sold to Chef Kurt,” Holly announces, “Bring me my money.”

“Happily,” Kurt grins and practically prances over to cash in.

“Now whose basket will you be confiscating?” Holly questions.

Kurt eyes Santana and Brittany; going back and forth, back and forth until he finally saunters over to Santana.

“Don’t you dare,” Santana threatens.

“You scared?” Kurt jokes.

“Hell no,” Santana replies, “But if you put me over there don’t be mad if I aim for your head instead.”

“I’ll take my chances,” Kurt smirks as he goes to pick up her basket.

Santana grumbles, “Son of a – “

But at the last minute he changes direction and picks up Brittany’s instead. Santana looks wide-eyed at the switch.

“Up to _snow_ good, I see,” Brittany comments, “I thought we were supposed to look out for each other since we’re the last of the Nice Chefs?”

Kurt shakes his head as he hands Brittany’s basket to Holly, “You can’t be trusted. I know where your true allegiance lies.”

Brittany drops the innocent act and smirks, “Big mistake. Santa’s watching, you know!”

“On to the next sabotage!” Holly announces, “Let’s see what good tidings will make an appearance next. What’s this? A box of old winter clothes perfect for dressing up…Frosty?”

Brittany tilts her head to the side trying to figure it all out but then more elves are pushing another platform into the kitchen piled with snow. It’s probably the most L.A. has ever seen in one day!

“Win this auction and force your opponent to stop what they’re doing to help me build a snowman!” Holly says, “The twist here is that the winner of this auction gets to decide when they want their opponent to help me at any time during the round. Do I hear $1,000?”

“$1,000!” Brittany bids; she’s going to need all the time she can get if she’s going to have to win back her ingredients now.

“$1,200,” Kurt offers next. With Santana determined to not spend a dime, Kurt doesn’t have to worry too much about her but he knows Brittany is still very loyal to Santana despite the competition.

Neither of them can be trusted.

“$1,500,” Brittany bids again.

“$1,700,” Kurt tries.

“$2,000,” Brittany says.

To everyone’s surprise, Santana bids next, “$2,200.”

“I thought you weren’t spending anything?” Brittany questions.

“I was just saying that,” Santana smirks, “Scared money don’t make money, babe.”

“Going once, going twice?” Holly calls out, but Brittany and Kurt are so stunned by Santana’s last minute bidding that they don’t say anything, “Sold! Chef Santana, pay up.”

Santana blows Brittany a kiss as she heads to Holly to pay.

“Who’s going to be dashing through the snow with me to help build Frosty here?” Holly asks.

Santana looks between the two but settles on her girlfriend instead.

Brittany’s jaw drops, “I’m shocked…again!”

“You love playing in the snow,” Santana teases as she returns to her pedestal, “It’s hardly a sabotage.”

Kurt just looks to the two and smiles widely, “This is outstanding.”

“Live it up, Kurt,” Santana threatens, “You’re next.”

“What? Why me?”

“Tis the season, isn’t it?” Santana jokes, “Can’t leave you out of the gift giving.”

“feel free to,” Kurt tells her.

Holly watches the exchange and smirks, “I’ve just come up with a great idea. I’ve got all this extra snow and I just can’t let it go to waste, so how about this? Win this auction and force 2 opponents to have a snowball fight for 5 whole minutes at the beginning of the round! Let’s start the bidding at $500.”

“$600,” Santana bids again.

“Oh now she’s going to try and buy up everything,” Kurt quips, “$800!”

“$1,000,” Brittany offers. Last round she had zero sabotages and this round she has _two_! No way she’d survive being hit with another.

“$1,200,” Santana bids.

“$1,500,” Kurt offers.

Brittany cuts to the chase, “$3,000!”

Santana shakes her head as she backs out.

“Going once,” Holly announces.

“She can have it,” Kurt grumbles.

“Alright, sold to Chef Brittany,” Holly says, “Come bring me my money.”

Brittany does as she’s told while Kurt and Santana glare at her the whole way.

“Okay now that the auction is out of the way,” Holly says as she puts away the cash, “Your 45 minutes of cook time starts NOW! Chef Brittany, to the snow wall. Chef Santana and Chef Kurt, right this way for a good ole fashioned snow ball fight.”

\\\

Brittany hurries off to the snow wall and quickly starts forming snow balls. An elf hands her a pair thick winter gloves and she gets to work making as many snowballs as she can. She thinks she’ll get a good pile first before she starts firing away at the wall.

She doesn’t want to waste too much time here since she needs to give her cupcakes enough time to bake _and_ cool before she can start decorating, so she thinks about which ingredients are an absolute must have.

\\\

Meanwhile, Santana and Kurt man their battle stations on the opposite side of the Cupcake Battle kitchen arena. Each have an elf aiding them in building snowballs before they’re being thrown at each other.

The kitchen soon fills with war cries as Santana and Kurt take aim and fire.

Holly stands back and laughs; for the first time in Cutthroat Cook-Off history, the round has started off without a single person being allowed to prep. She really thinks she outdid herself this time.

\\\

Back by the snow wall, Brittany has started to try and knock down her necessary ingredients. Surprisingly, she’s doing quite well! So far, she has about half of her list but the most important ones she needs are also the hardest to knock down because they’re so small. Still, Brittany concentrates hard and continues to fire at the snow wall in hope of knocking down everything she needs.

“Okay you two,” Holly interrupts Kurt and Santana, “Your 5 minutes is up, you can begin cooking now.”

“I can’t believe you aimed for the crotch,” Kurt chastises as he and Santana rush to their stations.

“You got me in the tit, what did you expect?” Santana retorts, “Eye for an eye.”

Kurt takes a look down and groans, “Great. Now it looks like I’ve peed myself.”

“You probably did,” Santana smirks, “You aren’t fooling anyone.”

\\\

“Finally!” Brittany cheers as she knocks down the last ingredients she needs.

“You sure you want to stop now?” Holly questions, “You’ve got a lot left here.”

Brittany shakes her head and goes for the ingredients she has won, “This is enough.”

Holly looks to the camera and shakes her head.

“Okay, okay,” Brittany chants as she sets off to make her batter.

She is way behind Kurt and Santana, but she can’t let that get to her head. There’s enough ingredients to make her snickerdoodle cupcakes, but she’s going to have to forgo her original plan of doing a peppermint, hot chocolate cupcake. She doesn’t have time to create a completely different second batter so instead she’ll just reserved some she’ll use for the snickerdoodle before she adds the cinnamon.

Maybe she can try to play it off as a peppermint white chocolate cupcake instead? Actually, that’s not a bad idea! She can still use the marshmallow whip frosting for both and just use candy cane dust for the white chocolate to add a bit of color.

Feeling hopeful once again, Brittany sets off to get back to work. She totally has this!

\\\

“How you doing over there?” Santana asks as she whips up a buttercream frosting. She’s only had to really sacrifice five minutes of her cook time so she works at an almost leisurely pace.

Does she feel a tiny bit bad for sabotaging Brittany? Maybe just a little, but she knows from experience that Brittany’s super resilient. Plus, she _has_ to win. She’s not very good at being a loser.

“All is merry and bright,” Brittany rambles. She’s so in the zone that she’s really just thinking out loud, “Almost done with my second batter. Gotta get these into the oven asap then work on my frostings.”

“Sounds like you’re pressed for time,” Santana says and Brittany can just hear the smirk, “You could use a break.”

Then she remembers what Santana bought earlier.

“Don’t,” Brittany warns but it’s too late. Santana’s already calling Holly over to use her sabotage.

“ _Do you wanna build a snowman?”_ Holly sings as she pulls Brittany from her station, “ _Come on, let’s go and play!_ ”

“No, no I do not want to build a snowman,” Brittany grumbles but elves appear and hand them winter gloves so that they can get to building.

Santana just smiles apologetically at the pout Brittany gives her, “Sorry baby!”

\\\

“Harsh,” Kurt notes as he sees Brittany and Holly hum the rest of the lyrics to the Frozen classic, “To your own girlfriend too? Stone cold, Santana.”

“She’ll forgive me,” Santana chuckles as she looks up to see the blondes’ work, “Looking good, Britt!”

Brittany just tries to glare her way, “I’m mad at you.”

“So much for forgiveness,” Kurt teases.

Santana only laughs at the way Brittany’s trying so hard to be angry at her. She’s failing miserably, but at least she looks cute playing in the snow.

“You look like you’re having fun,” Santana teases, “Remind me to buy you something nice when I win all this money!” 

“You’re not winning a single cent, Lopez!” Brittany warns as she rushes to finish building the snowman.

She grabs a carrot and practically punches it into Frosty’s face before chucking a top hat on his head and scarf around his neck. It’s not her best work but it’ll have to do this time. Hopefully Frosty forgives her for rushing.

“Okay,” Brittany looks to Holly, “We good here?”

Holly admires their work – albeit sloppy – and nods, “We’re good. Back to your station, Chef Brittany.”

Brittany’s a little nervous as she takes off to throw her cupcakes into the blast freezer. She would’ve liked a little more time to decorate but the sabotages have ruined that plan so now she’s in fight or flight mode.

She dodges nearly colliding into Kurt as she hurries back to her station to finish up her two frostings.

“Perfect,” She compliments as she tastes her frosting, “Okay, we can work with this.”

“You worried over there?” Kurt asks as he carefully begins piping, “Lots of mumbling going on.”

“You’re the ones that should be worried,” Brittany smirks.

“You sure?” Santana asks, “I’m not seeing two different cupcakes.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Brittany tells her before she grabs a rolling pin and starts crushing candy canes.

“Sweet baby Jesus,” Kurt curses, “What is going on over there?”

“She’s picturing your head,” Santana jokes.

“Hey, you’re just as guilty as I am,” Kurt replies, “It’s even worse for you because that’s your _girlfriend._ ”

“Yeah, but she _loves_ me,” Santana smirks, “Isn’t that right, Britt?”

“Nope, still mad at you,” Brittany says shortly before rushing off to grab her cooled cupcakes.

Santana only gasps while Kurt laughs his ass off.

\\\

Once Brittany retrieves the cupcakes, she’s quick to begin frosting. She eyes the time and moves with a steady hand. It gets eerily quiet in the kitchen as everyone is concentrating hard on decorating while the minutes tick away.

She can hear Holly start to countdown the seconds, but Brittany’s still doing the final touches up until the very last moment. Out of the corner of her eye, Brittany sees Kurt flailing but she can’t pay him any mind right now.

All of her focus has to be on finishing.

“Aaaand that’s a _wrap_!” Holly calls out, “Round 2 is over, back away from your dishes.”

Brittany’s actually sweating but she managed to finish right on time. She looks to her side and sees Kurt has gone so over the top with his decorating; however, the other looks completely bare aside from being frosted.

“What happened there?” Santana points out.

Kurt looks so disappointed, “I wasn’t able to do the dulce de leche drizzle. I can’t believe it.”

Will comes out a moment later before anyone else can comment on Kurt’s unfinished dessert.

Fortunately for Santana and Brittany, he’s the first to be judged.

\\\

“So as far as taste is concerned, you’ve nailed this,” Will compliments Kurt, “But you and I both know that one of your cupcakes is significantly lacking compared to the other. It looks like the time really got away from you this round.”

Kurt sighs, “That’s what happens when you’re a perfectionist.”

“Thanks Chef Kurt,” Will bows his head before going on to Brittany. He looks down at her offering and looks pleased yet again, “These look really great, Chef, let’s see if they taste just as good.”

Brittany’s got her fingers _and_ toes crossed as she awaits the verdict. They’re not what she planned on doing but she prides herself on her quick thinking and hopes that she can still make it to the next round.

Even if Kurt didn’t finish decorating one of this cupcakes, Will loved the taste so it could be enough to over look the incomplete cupcake. Let’s hope not though. Brittany’s never wanted to make it to the final round of a competition so bad before. Really, she just wants to see the look on Santana’s face when she beats her.

God, that’s going to be so satisfying!

“Presentation could use a little more work,” Will notes, “But flavor is there. This marshmallow frosting is amazing!”

“Thank you,” Brittany replies and gives a quick glance to Santana, “I’ve been told you can eat that frosting off of just about anything.”

Santana presses her lips tight together to stifle a laugh while Brittany’s expression remains even.

“I believe it too,” Will nods, “I especially like the snickerdoodle one, reminds me of making cookies with the family when I was younger. That’s what I like about your dishes so far, you pull a memory out. Great work, thanks.”

“Thank you,” Brittany smiles. She’s not sure where she stands but hopefully her ability to tap into a memory is enough. She keeps quiet as she listens to Will critique Santana next.

To no one’s surprise, Santana’s cupcakes are practically perfect. There’s no doubt that she’ll be moving on to the next round, so it’s between Brittany and Kurt to see who will be moving on. Brittany hates how nervous she is this time as Will and Holly stand before the final three chefs.

“So this was a hard decision,” Will says, “One Chef clearly ran out of time and let their presentation take a hit. The other’s presentation wasn’t as extravagant but at least they provided two complete cupcakes. It’s going to have to come down to taste, I think.”

Brittany takes a steadying breath as she can see Santana glance at her from the corner of her eye. She probably regrets those sabotages now, doesn’t she? Actually, Brittany knows how competitive Santana gets so maybe not.

“Which would I want another bite of?” Will wonders to himself, “I think I’m going to have to go with Chef Brittany.”

“Bah Humbug,” Kurt sighs but accepts the judge’s decision, “Thank you, Chef.”

“It was a close one,” Will smiles apologetically as Kurt comes over to shake his hand, “Great work.”

Kurt nods and turns to the final two, “Good luck, ladies! Merry Christmas.”

The remaining totals for each Chef is displayed on screen:

_Brittany: $17,000_

_Santana: $22,800_

Brittany’s still standing there stunned as ever, “Wow. Did I really beat out Kurt?”

“Don’t get cocky, anyone can beat Kurt,” Santana smirks.

“So crazy!” Brittany gasps, “I beat a Cupcake Battle judge _in_ the Cupcake Battle kitchen arena…and now I’m about to beat another.”

Santana’s brows rise, “Okay. Slow your roll, B. You just barely skirted by that round. You’re playing in the big leagues.”

“Yeah, but new round new me,” Brittany answers, “This is all or nothing now and you know how I feel about that. I’m sorry, baby, but you’re out of here.”

Santana just shakes her head, “We’ll see.”


	3. Round 3 - Snack for Santa

“Well, well,” Holly smirks, “Congratulation Chefs, you’ve made it to the final round. This might be a first for Cutthroat Cook-Off, I don’t think we’ve ever had a couple going head to head before! Let’s hope this outcome doesn’t ruin a relationship.”

“Doubt it,” Brittany giggles as she looks to Santana lovingly, “She’s stuck with me.”

“Then let’s get into it!” Holly says, “I’ve been pretty specific for the past two rounds, but I think I want to see how creative you can be. The big guy himself will be coming to town soon and I’m sure he would’ve worked up an appetite after making the long journey. I want to see you whip up your best snack for Santa.”

Brittany looks the most excited she has been all round, “This is going to be awesome!”

“You got that right, Hot Stuff,” Holly nods, “But don’t think I’m letting you two off that easy. For this round, you’ll go straight into your 30 minute cooking time right after your 60 second shop. From there, you’ll see what’s up for auction.”

Santana and Brittany nod, well aware of how the competition works.

“And on that note your 60 seconds starts…NOW!”

\\\

Santana and Brittany take off towards the pantry at full speed.

Brittany gets there just a second before thanks to her long legs and she zooms around the pantry for everything she could possibly need to make her Christmas candy bar. One of her most cherished memories of the holidays is the accidental creation of her family’s Christmas candy bar. At first it was a fudge recipe gone wrong, but it ended up tasting great the way it was. Now Brittany makes it every year around this time!

Santana on the other hand is going to go with her take on the traditional cookies and milk, but just a little more glammed up with the milk portion being a mini cocktail instead. Like Brittany, Santana is also pulling from a Christmas memory with her family and making the very first cookie her abuela ever taught her – crinkle cookies.

What sets these cookies apart from the usual take on them is that her abuela always incorporated Mexican chocolate into her recipe. There’s just that tiny touch of heat from the spice that leaves you feeling extra warm on the inside, perfect for a cold winter’s night. Santana’s confident they can’t be beaten!

\\\

“5…4…3…2…,” Holly counts down but both girls escape the closing pantry doors in time and go straight for their stations to get prepping.

Brittany upturns her whole basket onto her counter while Santana is a little more meticulous in organizing. With a much shorter cooking time, the pressure is on! The Chefs scramble to get started, but soon Holly begins to announce her first sabotage up for auction.

“Listen up Chefs!” Holly says as she waves as elves roll out a smaller Christmas tree with an array of presents beneath, “Win this auction and you’ll force your opponent to give up their entire basket in exchange for whatever they might find wrapped in these presents.”

Brittany cringes at that. Last round she barely made it with a similar sabotage, it would be such a pain in the ass to have to do it again.

“$2,000!” Santana bids to Brittany’s surprise.

“Oh you’re just throwing money away now,” Brittany laughs, “$2,500!”

“$3,000!” Santana fires back.

“$4,000.”

Santana grimaces, she was not trying to spend this much but she can’t give up her ingredients. Brittany’s too persistent though and that worries Santana.

“$4,500,” Santana tries one last time.

“Do I hear $5,000, Chef Brittany?” Holly asks.

Brittany pauses a second before shaking her head. She guesses she can handle this one; no way there’s anything too crazy in those presents.

“Sold!” Holly cheers and meets Santana at her station to pick up the money, “I’ll just help myself. You look a little busy. Elves! Take away Chef Brittany’s ingredients.”

A couple elves come rushing over to confiscate Brittany’s basket just as Brittany heads over to the Christmas tree. She plops down and starts tearing open box after box.

So far, it’s not looking good for her.

“Pineapples?” Brittany unwraps. She shakes her head and continues, “Okay chocolate-coated candies, I might be able to do something with this. Red and green, super festive. Great, a pack of socks. That’s not going to help me at all. A rock?! Holly, who did your shopping this year?”

Holly only shrugs though her face looks like she’s been up to no good.

Brittany groans but keeps going. So far she has been gifted with pineapple, a single stick of butter, pretzels, Christmas socks, candy canes, a jar of pickles, cereal, maple syrup, a rock, popcorn kernels and an avocado.

“Hey look San!” Brittany calls out as she holds up the avocado, “It’s your favorite!”

Santana looks up and instantly scowls, “Avocados have no place in this kitchen. I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again.”

Brittany just laughs as Santana starts to rant about a past contestant’s attempt at making vegan cupcakes using avocados, “Is Marely Rose watching? Look what you’ve done to me. Avocados have been ruined because of you.”

“Don’t be mean,” Brittany chastises lightly, “It’s Christmas.”

“Fine,” Santana sighs then grumbles one last time. “Vegan my ass.”

“Leave the vegans alone,” Brittany laughs as she still hunts for more ingredients. She’s not going back to her station until every damn gift is unwrapped because so far she has no idea what she’s going to make. There’s no way she can go with her original plan now, she doesn’t have nearly enough chocolate to make any type of fudge! 

Suddenly it hits her, she’s going to make a Santa snack mix! Most of the items she has been gifted are perfect for a trail mix so Brittany decides to go with that and quickly carries all of her new ingredients back to her station to get started.

But again, before Brittany can even find a rhythm Holly is interrupting once more.

“Look what I found!” Holly calls out as an elf rolls out another clothes rack, “It’s an exact replica of Santa’s suit. Win this auction and force your opponent to wear this for the rest of the round. Spoiler alert, it’s heavy as hell.”

“$1,000!” Brittany yells before looking to Santana.

“$1,500,” Santana bids with a sneer.

“$2,500,” Brittany matches Santana’s expression, “I’m not backing down so go ahead and waste your money, honey.”

Santana sees the determination in those pretty blue eyes and starts to waver. God, when did she become such a sucker for a smokin’ hot blonde? No one can know that Brittany’s practically got her wrapped around her pinky. She’s just going to stop bidding because she wants to leave here with a least $15k! That’s her story and she’s sticking to it. 

Besides, it’s just a Santa suit. What’s the worse that could happen?

“I’ll take it,” Santana grumbles, “Just hurry up and get me into it.”

“Yes!” Brittany cheers as elves quickly help Santana into the outfit while Holly comes to collect her money.

Santana has the most unamused look on her face as a Santa hat is pushed onto her head. The suit looks huge on her but she kind of pulls it off. Maybe Brittany’s just too in love to see Santana as anything other than perfect. Either way, Brittany wishes she could capture this moment forever.

“This thing is like a sweat suit!” Santana complains, “Why is it so heavy?”

“The journey from the North pole is treacherous,” Brittany explains jokingly, “He has to stay protected against the elements!”

Santana just grumbles beneath her breath before she catches Brittany giggling away.

“You’re loving this aren’t you?” Santana asks. She’s already breaking a sweat as she tries to scoop out her dough onto a baking sheet.

“My very own Santana Claus,” Brittany teases as she quickly skips over to press a kiss to Santana’s cheek, “What’s not to love? I think this look _soots_ you.”

“Not funny,” Santana smirks as she leans into Brittany’s kiss, “I’m very hot.”

Brittany grins, “Hell yeah, you are.”

“Hey, hey!” Holly calls out, “You’re supposed to be enemies. No flirting!”

“Oh that’s right,” Brittany winks at Santana before running back to her station to finish up.

Santana just shakes her head, but she doesn’t even try to hide her smile. Leave it to Brittany to have her feeling smitten in the middle of a cooking competition.

Then again, what’s new?

\\\

Santana’s cookies are nearly done and the clock is winding down, so she moves on to make her mini martini. To make it extra festive she has melted down some white chocolate to use on the rim of her glass so she can dip it into green and red sprinkles. It’s just the right amount of color alongside her Mexican chocolate crinkle cookies.

Brittany’s currently tossing her trail mix while she hunts for the perfect serving dish when she hears the distinct sounds of a cocktail shaker being shaken.

“Are you making a drink too?” Brittany gasps.

Santana just smirks and continues to shake, “Of course, aren’t you?”

“Damn. Why didn’t I think of that?” Brittany curses; she didn’t even think about accompanying her dish with a drink. Santana’s sure to get major bonus points there if it’s well executed.

Still, she doesn’t let it get to her as she begins plating.

\\\

“Time’s up, Chefs!” Holly announces. Elves quickly help Santana out of the Santa suit while others clean up Brittany’s mess of wrapping paper and boxes before Will returns.

Seconds later, Will reappears and makes his way over to the judging table where Holly awaits him.

“Chefs, please bring forward your desserts,” Holly says before turning to Will, “This round was all about the perfect snack for Santa.”

“Wonderful,” Will smiles, “That leaves a lot of room for creativity so let’s see what we’ve got.” 

Up first is Brittany.

“Chef Brittany, please explain your dish,” Holly says.

Brittany nods, “Today I have prepared something that I like to call Santa Snack Mix. I remember when I was younger, we would make reindeer food at school and I wanted to do something like that but edible so this happened. It’s a holiday take on a typical trail mix but I’ve kicked it up a notch with making my own caramel popcorn which I’ve hit with a little cinnamon and maple.”

Will nods and pops a handful of the mix into this mouth. His expression shifts as he chews but Brittany isn’t sure where she stands. He hasn’t keeled over but he doesn’t look blown away either.

“Well Brittany, it’s a tasty treat,” Will compliments, “I like the balance of salt and sweet and your caramel corn is great. However, I do think it’s missing something. I was expecting your final dish to wow me considering what you’ve been putting forth in the past rounds. Maybe not your best work.”

Brittany tries to keep the polite smile on her face as she nods, “Thank you Chef.”

Santana looks to her girlfriend and frowns. What does Will know anyway? If we’re going to measure success, Santana has him beat. Hell, _Kurt_ has him beat! Brittany shouldn’t be listening to a mediocre Chef’s critique – from where she stands, Brittany’s dish looks way more festive that her own.

Santana begins to feel that familiar fire building within her – the kind of fire that usually leaves contestants crying and producers shaking their heads at her – but it’s probably not the best idea to go all Lima Heights on the judge. Especially when the judge is the deciding factor of whether or not she’s walking out of here with a bunch of cash.

Maybe she’ll save the beat down until _after_ the winner is announced?

“Chef Santana, you’ve outdone yourself again,” Will compliments as he admires her dish.

Santana smiles politely although she still kind of wants to punch him in the face.

“Chef Santana, explain your dish,” Holly instructs.

“So I’ve prepared my abuela’s crinkle cookies,” Santana explains, “Growing up, we always incorporated Mexican chocolate just for that little kick of heat. Paired with it is a sugar cookie martini.”

“Cookies and alcohol, huh?” Will comments as he bites into the cookie. He looks a little unsure about the combination but that soon changes as he tastes more of the cookie, “Okay this is delicious. It’s just the right amount of spice and balances well with the chocolate.”

Santana bows her head at the compliment as Will picks up the cocktail.

“That’s really nice,” Will compliments again after taking a sip, “I would definitely love to see this at a Christmas party and I’m sure Santa would too. Although I’m still not sure how I feel about the cookies and cocktail together. Thank you Chef.”

“Thank you,” Santana nods.

With both of their dishes not hitting their mark completely, this could go either way for Santana and Brittany.

They come to stand in front of their stations together as they find each other’s pinkies to link. Brittany’s actually a little nervous this time, maybe the most nervous she has been all competition. When she looks to her side, Santana remains confident with her head held high. 

“Another hard decision this round,” Will notes, “Both dishes had their ups and downs but I think the deciding factor will have to be what I believe Santa will enjoy the most. Because of that, I’m going to have to go with…Chef Santana.”

Santana’s draw drops as Brittany wraps her up in a squeeze.

“You did it!” Brittany cheers as she sways Santana from side to side.

“Congratulation Chef! It looks like it pays to be a little naughty,” Holly jokes but Santana doesn’t even hear her – too surprised that she managed to pull this off despite being slowed down by her Santa suit.

“Wait, why are you so excited?” Santana asks Brittany with a chuckle, “You just lost.”

“Maybe,” Brittany shrugs as she sets Santana down. She still has her hands resting on Santana’s hips, “But when you win, we _both_ do. What’s yours is mine and all.”

Santana giggles, “Babe, that only works if we’re married.”

“Good thing you just won a bunch of money then,” Brittany winks, “You did say to remind you to buy something nice for me.”

Santana tilts her head at the suggestive tone but she’s not quite sure if they’re on the same page so she jokingly says, “There you go again trying to get a proposal out of me…”

Brittany throws her head back as she laughs, “Well if you won’t do it, I just might.”

Santana’s brows rise as her suspicions are finally confirmed. They’ve teasingly talked about it over the past couple of months and Santana always pictured it happening at some point, but she didn’t think it would be happening this soon.

Then again, why not? They’re in love and Santana can’t imagine anyone else but Brittany by her side.

“I want to do it,” Santana beams as she pulls Brittany in for a kiss, “I’m sure I can find you something nice for $18,300.”

“Totally,” Brittany giggles as she mumbles against Santana’s lips, “Best. Christmas. Ever.”

\\\

The Cupcake Battles’ kitchen arena has been changed back to how it normally looks aside from the Christmas decorations still hanging around. Now there is a giant red sleigh in the middle of the room where Santana, Brittany, Kurt and Sugar are all gathered as they smile and wave at the camera.

It pans out to reveal Holly standing on the outside, leaning against the sleigh. She has one of the cocktails Santana made last round in one hand and Brittany’s cupcake in the other.

“And there you have it folks!” Holly announces, “This Cupcake Battles’ takeover is officially over.” She turns to look at Santana and Kurt, “Thanks for letting me crash your show and doing whatever I want! It was very awesome.”

“It wasn’t really up to us,” Santana chuckles.

“Come back anytime,” Kurt adds with a wink.

“I just might!” Holly smirks before turning back to the camera. She raises her glass and says, “See ya on the flip side, America. Happy _Holly-_ days to all and to all a lit night!”


End file.
